I’ve been promising this Snickerdoodle recipe for weeks. Sorry it’s taken so long…but when you get back from a vacation you need an additional week to be a slug, and get over the time difference. (I was in Iceland – it is unbelievably gorgeous!) Then a few days to catch up on laundry, mail and email. Plus, I’ve been in book mode every day, all day trying to get my book noticed, so I just needed to veg out. (You can go to FranTunno.com and click on events to see what I’m up to next.)
Now back to the cookies! The first time I made Snickerdoodles I was in my mom’s kitchen with my brother Bob. He was home from college for the summer and decided to make cookies. I was his willing apprentice. I think we found the recipe in one of Mom’s cookbooks because she would never have made these cookies. All her cookies usually involved hours of work, anise extract, lemon and orange zest. Those are all the typically Italian ingredients mom used when making cookies, which were always great, but sometimes a kid (or adult) just wants a good old-fashioned American cookie. Snickerdoodles are just the thing. How can you not love a cookie that’s rolled in cinnamon sugar?
Bob took me to the store with him to buy cream of tartar because, if it wasn’t anise, vanilla or almond extract, it wasn’t in our kitchen. The cookies turned out delicious, I added another cookie to my repertoire, and got to spend time with an older brother who was in college and therefore totally cool. That he wanted to spend time baking with me thrilled this former 10-year-old.
Now I have a niece-in-law (Bob’s daughter-in-law, Elissa) who loves Snickerdoodle anything, so I make them (or try to) for her birthday every year. She and the family loved them this year!
I used to use Emeril Lagasse’s recipe, but I found a much better one on a website called, The Food Charlatan. They are chewy, moist and double dipped in cinnamon sugar so they’re even more amazing.
The baker is Karen Gifford and she knows her stuff. I always try to give the credit where it’s due when it comes to recipes. This one was so good that I even scrawled a note on the top so I remember this is the recipe to use from now on…sorry Emeril.
So, next summer party you throw, make these. I think a bowl of vanilla ice cream with a Snickerdoodle perched on top would be a great summer dish. They’re worth the extra time scrunching (read the recipe and you’ll know what I mean) and double dipping. And it seems like a perfect circle of life moment that I now bake these cookies for Bob’s daughter-in-law, his son, and grandkids. Go ahead, click on that hyperink and sing along…you know you want to!
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Double Dipped Snickerdoodles
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and prepare a few cookie sheets with parchment paper.
In a large bowl or stand mixer, beat 1 cup of butter for about two minutes or until smooth, scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl a few times.
Add 1 1/3 cup of white sugar and 1/3 cup of packed brown sugar. Beat for two minutes, taking the time to scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl in between. The butter and sugar should be light and fluffy with no chunks.
Add the 2 eggs and 2 teaspoons of vanilla. Beat well, scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl. Make sure you beat it long enough that it becomes smooth and homogenous.
Place 3 1/4 cups flour in a large bowl. Add the baking soda, the kosher salt and the 1 1/2 teaspoons of cream of tartar into the flour. Mix thoroughly and then addd it gradually to the butter mixture. Continue mixing until the flour streaks are gone but don't overmix.
Use a large cookie scoop or a small ice cream scoop to shape the dough into a ball. Each ball should be 1 1/2 to 2 inches across.
In a medium bowl combine the sugar and the cinnamon thoroughly. Then roll each ball in the cinnamon sugar.
Place the cookie balls on the parchment-lined cookie sheet with about two inches between them. About 12 cookies to an average cookie sheet.
Bake the cookies at 350 for about 9 to 11 minutes, until the edges are barely set. it's OK if the centers of the cookies are still shiny. The rest of the cookie should be matte. It's very important not to overbake snickerdoodles; underbaking slightly is what gives them that soft and chewy texture.
Immediately after removing the cookies from the oven, use a spoon to push the edges of the cookies toward their centers. This makes the cookies round in shape and makes the center thicker and more chewy. You have to do this withing 30 to 60 seconds of taking them out of the oven before the edges harden.
Let the cookies sit on the pan for about 3-5 minutes. Remove the cookies to a cooling rack or on a sheet of foil.
While the cookies are still warm, but cool enough to handle, place each cookie back in the cinnamon sugar bowl. Coat one side of the cookie then flip it to coat the other. Enjoy!
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